Costco pulls Xbox items as Microsoft raises prices

Costco has removed Xbox consoles, games and related products from its online storefronts in the United States and United Kingdom and is pulling or discounting remaining inventory at some international locations, according to multiple reports and shopper accounts, days after Microsoft announced a U.S. price increase for its Xbox Series consoles. The changes were first noticed by customers searching Costco's website and by shoppers who posted images and accounts on social media and online forums, and in some markets retailers including Sam's Club and specialty game stores have also curtailed Xbox listings.

Microsoft announced that new U.S. prices for the Xbox Series will take effect on October 3, raising the Series X to $649.99 and the Series S to $399.99, and said the move was driven by the macroeconomic environment. Retailers and analysts have pointed to those increases, and to broader tariff and supply cost pressures, as likely factors in the sudden disappearance of Xbox product pages and the removal of shelf stock in some locations. Costco has not publicly commented on the delistings. A Costco store in the United Kingdom told a trade publication it was no longer selling Xbox...